Threads of change

This chapter documents the design of a Master&s;s course, "Sustainability in Context," that addresses the challenge of transforming mindsets through a focus on sustainable approaches, art-based pedagogy, and community engagement. With different worldviews and work backgrounds, the authors developed a course that merged two dimensions of sustainability, creating a pathway for students to explore environmental issues and social justice within the context of artmaking. In a changing society, the course emphasizes the importance of diversity among people and communities, fostering empathy as a means for cognitive and emotional connections with others. Art generates significant value, helping students reflect on social issues such as race, ethnicity, gender, culture, and sustainability while fostering connections with their surroundings. By addressing social needs, environmental challenges, and moral agency, this approach deepens students&s; understanding of sustainability and equips them to engage with their communities and address broader societal challenges. Grounded in the Sustainability Mindset Principles, this course serves as a platform for fostering sustainable practices and critical engagement with pressing societal challenges. To make this complex academic topic accessible and engaging, the chapter adopts a hybrid storytelling format. Sketches, illustrations, photographs, and narrative fragments depict the creative process by the two others of jointly developing the course. Using art-inspired storytelling, the authors connect dialogues from the story characters, Kat and X-tina, and scenes from the design process with key academic insights, inviting readers to reflect on, clarify, or challenge these ideas. This innovative approach aims to enrich the narrative of sustainability education while engaging a broader and more diverse readership.